Book Review: Revolution by Jennifer Donnelly

Posted 28 January, 2019 by Molly(Cover To Cover Cafe) in 2019 Reads, Book Reviews / 2 Comments

Book Review: Revolution by Jennifer Donnelly
Title: Revolution
Author: Jennifer Donnelly
Published by Delacorte Press
Date Published: 26 July, 2011
Pages: 472
Genres: Young Adult, Fiction
Format: Hardcover
Source: Purchased
Purchase: Amazon
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Rating:

BROOKLYN: Andi Alpers is on the edge. She’s angry at her father for leaving, angry at her mother for not being able to cope, and heartbroken by the loss of her younger brother, Truman. Rage and grief are destroying her. And she’s about to be expelled from Brooklyn Heights’ most prestigious private school when her father intervenes. Now Andi must accompany him to Paris for winter break. PARIS: Alexandrine Paradis lived over two centuries ago. She dreamed of making her mark on the Paris stage, but a fateful encounter with a doomed prince of France cast her in a tragic role she didn’t want—and couldn’t escape. Two girls, two centuries apart. One never knowing the other. But when Andi finds Alexandrine’s diary, she recognizes something in her words and is moved to the point of obsession. There’s comfort and distraction for Andi in the journal’s antique pages—until, on a midnight journey through the catacombs of Paris, Alexandrine’s words transcend paper and time, and the past becomes suddenly, terrifyingly present. Jennifer Donnelly, author of the award-winning novel A Northern Light, artfully weaves two girls’ stories into one unforgettable account of life, loss, and enduring love. Revolution spans centuries and vividly depicts the eternal struggles of the human heart.

From the Hardcover edition.

Purchased a copy of this book for my collection and was under no obligation to post a review, positive or negative.

As someone who has dealt with multiple tragic losses, depression and anxiety all at the same time, this book really hit me with the emotions. I was feeling them all with this amazingly written novel from a truly talented author. From the start, Ms. Donnelly had me hooked. I picked this book up at the local used bookstore just to have something to read, not knowing the emotional connections I would have with all the characters.

Andi and Alexandrine are beautifully chiseled with their flaws and their pain and sadness. Both characters, while one in the present and one in the past, really tore at my heart. Alexandrine’s character wrote in her journal, but the tragic loss she endured, the heartache she was dealt became mine. Andi’s teenage mind, her rebelliousness, was so much like my own and the way she dealt with her pain, her loss, was so familiar to me.

That takes an incredible author to get me to connect so fully with their characters. This story of an epic revolution of mind, soul, and events, will really cocoon the reader. I stayed up long into the night, turning page after page, reveling in one world and then the next in an instant. These characters, this story line, this author deserve 4 stars and high recommendations from me, so that is what they are getting. I absolutely can not wait until I get my hands on another amazing story from this very talented author.

About Jennifer Donnelly

Jennifer Donnelly is the author of eleven novels – Beauty and the Beast: Lost in a Book, These Shallow Graves, Sea Spell, Dark Tide, Rogue Wave, Deep Blue, Revolution, A Northern Light, The Tea Rose, The Winter Rose and The Wild Rose – and Humble Pie, a picture book for children.

Jennifer grew up in New York State, in Lewis and Westchester counties, and attended the University of Rochester where she majored in English Literature and European History.

Jennifer’s first novel, The Tea Rose, an epic historical novel set in London and New York in the late 19th century, was called “exquisite” by Booklist, “so much fun” by the Washington Post, a “guilty pleasure” by People and was named a Top Pick by the Romantic Times. The Rose trilogy continued with The Winter Rose and The Wild Rose.

In 2014, Jennifer teamed up with Disney to launch the bestselling Waterfire Saga, an epic series about six mermaids on a quest to rid the world of an ancient evil. The first book in the series, Deep Blue, was released in May, 2014; the second, Rogue Wave, launched in January 2015; the third, Dark Tide, came out in October 2015; and the fourth, Sea Spell, was released in June 2016.

Jennifer worked with Disney again in 2017, when she released the NY Times bestselling “Lost in a Book,” an original novel set in the world of the blockbuster film, “Beauty and the Beast.”

Jennifer lives in New York’s Hudson Valley with her husband, daughter, and two rescue dogs.

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